Saturday, January 13, 2007

I never thought that the time would come when I would have to fuse those two words in a sentence. Leave it up to a free-speech-hating conservative bookDVD-burner to make some news out of Seattle this week. People For The American Way's (PFAW) Right-Wing Watch caught this piece from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

"Condoms don't belong in school, and neither does Al Gore. He's not a schoolteacher," said Frosty Hardison, a parent of seven who also said that he believes the Earth is 14,000 years old. "The information that's being presented is a very cockeyed view of what the truth is. ... The Bible says that in the end times everything will burn up, but that perspective isn't in the DVD." Hardison's e-mail to the School Board prompted board member David Larson to propose the moratorium Tuesday night.

And you thought these people didn't exist anymore? They are alive and well (not mentally however) espousing their horrid beliefs that fly in the face of reality and sanity. After hearing Hardison's complaints, the Federal Way school board did not choose the logical decision of dismissing the loon. Instead the banned An Inconvenient Truth. No, I don't have to repeat that, you can read it again and again if you like.

Hardison's wife is off her rocker as well, listen to this crap:

"From what I've seen (of the movie) and what my husband has expressed to me, if (the movie) is going to take the approach of 'bad America, bad America,' I don't think it should be shown at all," Gayle Hardison said. "If you're going to come in and just say America is creating the rotten ruin of the world, I don't think the video should be shown."

Well isn't she a good wife, supporting her man. You believe what you are told dear and everything will be just fine. Geez, this reminds me of the scene in 'Field of Dreams' at the PTA meeting when Annie Kinsella smacks down the woman in favor of banning books. So I ask you Mr. Hardison, Mr. Failed-City Council-Candidate, are you in favor of the constitution?

Who knows how far the Senator Bruno corruption story will go. The other day it was his son being involved in his unethical schemes. Now it turns out he used campaign funds to buy personal stocks. Are you freakin' kidding me? This guy will do whatever it takes to work for the people of New York fulfilling his own greediness and desires. The Daily Gotham asks if this will be enough for NY Republicans to throw him out on his rear-end.

Highly doubtful, greed and corruption seems to be the name of the game as far as I can see. The campaign laws in New York are weak compared to many other states (until Spitzer gets around to it) so Bruno's actions might not be illegal, though certainly unethical to say the least.

From the NY Times:

Complicating Mr. Bruno’s case is the fact that he had personally invested in two of the companies that his campaign accounts bought stock in, and he had financial dealings with the chairman of two others. The accounts Mr. Bruno used in the investments were held by his re-election committee and the State Senate Republicans’ campaign committee.

Last year, the senator’s re-election committee reported losing almost $99,000 on an investment in 2000 in Plug Power Inc., a maker of fuel cells based in Latham, N.Y., in which he also personally owned stock, his financial disclosure reports show. In July 2001, a year after he and his committee bought their shares in Plug Power, Mr. Bruno helped secure $500,000 in state money for a research project involving Plug Power, which has also received state contracts and other government aid.

Incredible! Shouldn't our lawmakers be concentrated on fixing the problems of our state and not their stock portfolios?

Friday, January 12, 2007

Okay, take a deep breath New Yorkers. It seems our former Mayor may have decided to run for President of the loony-bin rather than for the United States of America. An Op-Ed published early this morning by Giuliani and another possible Presidential contender Newt Gingrich in the Wall Street Journal is raising a lot of eyebrows.

First off they realize that civil projects are necessary and that military solutions will not work. Whew, at least they are smarter than the current President. Their main idea is to create a job corps protected by U.S. troops to improve the city with public works and what not. Then they can buy goods with the money they earn and in turn everyone can be happy and peaceful. Why will this work when things have been falling to pieces for the last four years? I'll let them say it in their own words.

There are many lessons from the successful welfare reforms in New York City that can be readily applied in Iraq. In the early 1990s, New York City suffered an average of 2,000 murders a year while more than 1.1 million people--one out of every seven New Yorkers--were unemployed and on welfare. Too many neighborhoods were pervaded by a sense of hopelessness that came from a combination of high crime, high unemployment and despair. "Workfare" proved an excellent method to change this destructive decades-long paradigm. It required able-bodied welfare recipients to work 20 hours a week in exchange for their benefits. In the process, we reasserted the value of the social contract, which says that for every right there is a responsibility, for every benefit an obligation.

Time to wake up boys. Iraq is NOTHING like New York City. Not now, not in the early 90s, not ever! Two thousand murders in a year is a terrible statistic in any city, but in Baghdad the death toll easily top 2,000 each month and is constantly rising! Their solution is utterly implausible because Giuliani and Gingrich are ignoring the reality of what is going on in Baghdad and Iraq.

The picture posted in the WSJ says more than enough regarding the opinion of this piece. Uncle Sam is gloriously bringing aid from the U.S. government (that can't fix it's own cities by the way) to the grateful citizens of Iraq. This is typical 'White Man's Burden' bullshit. The Iraqi people want us to leave as soon as possible. They know we have done far too much in regards to the decimation of their country. It is time to leave now, not to make more of a mess.

Personally I couldn't stomach hearing those voices of hate. Morgan, Sussman, et al. are acting like five year olds that are covering their tracks after raiding the cookie jar. The honorable DailyKos blogger abbaanthony managed to listen to an hour of their obfuscations and lies before bowing out. See his take on the broadcast here.

KSFO could not tell the truth if their lives depended on it.

They spent nearly ten minutes talking about how they support Muslims who are Americans and who are trying to build up America and not working to destroy our country. But then they went out of their way to stress that Rep. Ellison was appointed by the House leadership as chairman of the Judiciary Committee. They said that they have lost any confidence in the House because they appointed a Muslim to that post. Let me be clear, they believe it is ok for Muslims to live here, just as long as they do not attempt to enter public life in any noticeable way. Because in reality, they believe there are no true American-Muslims they all want to bring down the country. What bigots!

The opening paragraph really shows what they are all about. There is a better chance that hell will freeze over than the kooks on KSFO become honest and dignified. Of course I didn't expect anything to come from this special broadcast. Like any right-wing station, it was merely a ratings gimmick and a chance to pacify the general public so that the hate and vitriol can continue.

Thanks again to Spocko and Stark for helping to make this big news outside of the blogs. People need to know what rightwing radio hosts are all about.

The Bush Adminstration is well known for keeping its people on board for loyalty. Loyalty is far more important than a job well done or upholding the oath of office. So the reports that are coming about U.S. Atty Carol Lam forced resignation shouldn't be surprising.

The official word is that her job performance has been lacking, yet she has been known to have prosecuted high-level cases such as Randy "Duke" Cunningham's corruption case, corruption surrounding two San Diego Councilmen (one was eventually reversed) and recently taking on the ironic case of the Fence Company that hired illegal immigrants to build the fence along the U.S. - Mexico border.

The Bush administration has quietly asked San Diego U.S. Attorney Carol Lam, best known for her high-profile prosecutions of politicians and corporate executives, to resign her post, a law enforcement official said.

Lam, a Bush appointee who took the helm in 2002, was targeted because of job performance issues – in particular that she failed to make smuggling and gun cases a top priority, said the official, who declined to be identified because Lam has yet to step down.

Lam has had high-profile successes during her tenure, such as the Randy “Duke” Cunningham bribery case – but she alienated herself from bosses at the Justice Department because she is outspoken and independent, said local lawyers familiar with her policies.

It is possible that her job performance was the issue. Yet what exactly was it about her performance? Was it about taking on high-profile Republicans like the "Dukester" or not prosecuting enough criminals that smuggle guns and drugs? As you might know, the CIA has recently stepped in to push back further investigations into the implications of Cunningham's case. Regardless, it is very interesting how the Adminstration is pushing her resignation under such secrecy (though it is SOP for Bush). If her performance was so bad, why not come out and say it?

“It's virtually unprecedented to fire a U.S. Attorney absent some misconduct in office,” said criminal defense attorney Michael Attanasio, a former federal prosecutor.

“This office has clearly made a priority of investigating and prosecuting white collar offenses and has had occasional success doing so,” he said. “One would think that would be valued by any administration, even if it meant fewer resources were devoted to routine and repetitive border crimes.”

Everything done by Bush is 'virtually unprecedented,' so why should this case be any different. Unless you go along with what Bush says to the letter, your job security is in trouble. Though if you toe the line, screw the country and the troops, you can stay for years beyond it is time to be kicked out.

Our fair city is full of Democrats, somewhere in the range of four to one. So it shouldn't be suprising that there is overwhelming support to leave Iraq and stop the endless cycle of violence that our troops endure on a daily basis. Of course there is widespread dissatisfaction against Bush's war across the country, but hey, this is NYC.

In the wake of President Bush's Wednesday night address to the country, when he announced that he will send thousands of more soldiers to Iraq, hundreds of people protested the plan. They convened at the tiny island in the middle of Times Square in front of the U.S. Armed Forces recruiting station, with signs like "Stop the funding, stop the war" and "When government lies, Democracy dies" with drivers passing by honking their horns. Some protesters were dressed as Guantanamo prisoners. Of course, there were counter-protesters; one sign said, "Warning: Leftist protesters trying to demoralize our troops." No arrests were reported.

The protest was organized by United for Peace and Justice, which coordinated others across the country yesterday. There will be another, big rally on Saturday, January 27 in Washington, D.C.

New Yorkers will not stand silent while Bush continues to torture and keep us trapped in an unjust war. The passion of the activists exceeds the desire to stay away from the tourist trap that is Times Square. We will do whatever is necessary to stop this President ruthless dictator. So if you couldn't make it yesterday, consider going down to Washington on Jan. 27th for the massive protest United for Peace and Justice is organizing. It is time to stop this madness!

Now that we are nearly four years into the quagmire that is Iraq, public attitudes are changing towards the war. The American public is now solidly against it. Democrats in D.C. are now against it (Lieberman obviously doesn't count as a Dem). Even moderate Republicans like Smith and Hagel are coming out against it.

The most fervent supporters of the troops have always been the troops. We here on the left care about them and want them home, wingnuts claim to care about them by sticking magnets on their SUVs and wanting more of them to be in harm's way to win an unwinnable war. Yet it is the soldiers' duty to protect his brothers and sisters who fight on the front line. It is their duty to support the commander-in-chief as he leads them into war.

For years the troops gave the President enthusiastic responses. Bush has relied on using our troops as a backdrop to his misbegotten policy blunders to give an illusion of support. On Thursday, January 11th 2007, this wasn't the case.

Except for the grilling Rumsfeld received by soldiers asking for body armor, the troops have been highly supportive of the President and especially when he visits them face-to-face. However yesterday wasn't that day over at Fort Benning.

Soldiers being soldiers, those who met the commander in chief Thursday saluted smartly and applauded politely. But it was hardly the boisterous, rock-star reception Bush typically gets at military bases. During his lunchtime speech, the soldiers were attentive but quiet. Not counting introduction of dignitaries, Bush was interrupted by applause just three times in 30 minutes -- once when he talked about a previous Medal of Honor winner from Fort Benning, again when he pledged to win in Iraq and finally when he repeated his intention to expand the Army.

The soldiers are told to be a good audience for the President, but they do not have to go over the top. Being polite is sufficient for the commanders. However those commanders were still wary of their troops' opinions of Bush and decided to silence them from talking with reporters.

Eventually frustrated journalists were allowed to speak with a few selected soldiers. A hand-picked few hardly represented how these brave men and women feel about the President's recent decision to send the 3rd Brigade Combat Team from the 3rd Infantry Division back to Iraq, two months earlier than previously reported.

Another typical PR move by the White House. The President gets his photos without hearing how the troops really feel about the escalation Bush has saddled our military with. As the military's support for the war plunging, expect more cool responses to come.

David Greene from NPR reported on this story as well, listen to it here.

News reports are still coming in about the latest attack on U.S. interests abroad. According to Reuters a huge explosion ripped through the embassy at 5:55am local time on Friday morning (10:55PM EST).

ATHENS (Reuters) - An explosion ripped through the U.S. embassy compound in central Athens on Friday, a police source said.

It was not clear what caused the blast and there was no immediate word on whether there were any casualties.

Police cordoned off all roads around the embassy.

Police officials at the scene said that whatever caused the explosion damaged the official embassy sign outside the mission, but there was little other indication of the extent of damage inside.

What was that meme Bush was saying about keeping the war in Iraq? Anyways, hopefully no one was seriously hurt and the damage is only to the building.

Update #1

Apparently the blast occurred outside the building and only shattered some glass on the third floor. No one was injured in the blast. This was the first attack on the embassy since a rocket propelled grenade was fired at it on February 15, 1996.

ATHENS, Greece - An anti-tank shell was fired at the U.S. Embassy early Friday, striking the front of the building but causing no injuries. A senior police official said the blast was an act of terrorism, raising fears of a resurgence of far-left Greek militant groups.

Police cordoned off streets around the heavily guarded building after the explosion shortly before 6 a.m. The shell struck the third floor and smashed glass in nearby buildings.

Investigators were examining what they believed was the device used to fire the rocket shell from a construction site near the embassy.

"This is an act of terrorism. We don't know where from," Attica Police Chief Asimakis Golfis said. "There was a shell that exploded in the toilets of the building ... It was fired from street level."

Thursday, January 11, 2007

It looks like the Bruno family is in a heap of trouble with federal investigators. The F.B.I. opened up an inquiry last year into the Senator's shady dealings and have now stumbled upon his son's connections to the matter.

From the NY Times today:

The younger Mr. Bruno was instrumental in persuading the wife of Mr. Abbruzzese to pay $90,000 for almost 12 acres on Pond View Way from a partnership involving Senator Bruno, according to an owner of the partnership. Weeks before that November 2004 deal was completed, a Canadian racetrack owner that had hired Kenneth Bruno as a lobbyist formed an advocacy group with Mr. Abbruzzese that would urge an overhaul of the state’s horse racing industry, an issue in which Senator Bruno has been playing a major role.

Kenneth Bruno’s involvement in recruiting buyers for the partnership’s land, including Mr. Abbruzzese’s wife, was critical to reviving a moribund project in which Senator Bruno had a 25 percent stake, according to James D. Featherstonhaugh, a lawyer and lobbyist who also owned 25 percent of the partnership, the First Grafton Corporation.

Peeling the onion that is Republican corruption in New York is worse than shedding tears, it is evidence that things need to change up in Albany. Hopefully these investigations will help Spitzer's quest to reform our state's government. We certainly need it.

Not only does she love Fox News, she loves the President and his 'new' plan even more. Undying loyalty without regard for reality is the standard for the Bush Adminstration.

"It's bad policy to speculate on what you'll do if a plan fails when you're trying to make a plan work."

This is from today's Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearings. Condi didn't stop there however, she added on that the destabilization of the region had nothing to do with President Bush 'bringing to democracy' to Iraq.

Speaking about the actions of Iran and Syria, which she repeated were destabilizing Iraq and the broader Middle East, Rice said the two states were engaging in "extortion" rather than diplomacy with the United States.

Leave it to her to assess blame on anyone and everyone other than herself and her boss.

In the run up to last night's speech by the President his supporting pundits went out into media land and tried to compare Bush to Abraham Lincoln. Their reasoning? Bush has been firing generals until hefinds one that wants to win the war. Oy, well at least it wasn't for their orator skills. I've never read transcripts of Lincoln's works that contained 'um' and 'durrr' so that one is off the table.

The Daily Show sums the spin up perfectly, check it out here from Crooks and Liars.

Right-wingers love Fox News for their blatantly slanted view of the world which generally falls off the plane of reality. So it should be no surprise that policymakers and Bush Adminstration officials love Fox too for letting them get away with all of their lies about reality.

In comments overheard on an open microphone between morning television interviews, including one with Fox, the top U.S. diplomat said: "My Fox guys, I love every single one of them."

But Rice told an aide that when she was next in Iraq she would like to do a "one-on-one" interview with CBS "The Early Show" anchor Harry Smith.

"He's a decent guy. I know they are, like, 55 in the ratings, but I like him," Rice said in comments monitored by Reuters on a television feed.

Well who wouldn't love Fox News hacks, they are so....um, willing and able to take anything Bush and his cronies say at face value without practicing that thing called......journalism. By the way the 'I like Harry Smith' bit was pretty harsh when she added that he was 55th in the ratings, ouch!

People have been making the comparison for quite sometime now. As the fourth anniversary of the invasion approaches, there is still no end in sight. Last night Bush announced that he will has already started deploying an additional 21,500 troops into Iraq. There are also news reports that show he is becoming increasingly hostile with Iran. G-d (or whatever you ascribe to or not) help us all if the Escalator keeps escalating with the Iranians.

Just as hostilities poured out all over Southeast Asia with the help of Nixon and Kissinger, Bush is going all out on his own. The insanity is increasing ladies and gentlemen.

LBJ, Jan. 10, 1967: This forward movement is rooted in the ambitions and the interests of Asian nations themselves. It was precisely this movement that we hoped to accelerate when I spoke at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore in April 1965, and I pledged "a much more massive effort to improve the life of man" in that part of the world, in the hope that we could take some of the funds that we were spending on bullets and bombs and spend it on schools and production.

GWB, Jan. 10, 2007: A successful strategy for Iraq goes beyond military operations. Ordinary Iraqi citizens must see that military operations are accompanied by visible improvements in their neighborhoods and communities. So America will hold the Iraqi government to the benchmarks it has announced.

LBJ, Jan. 10, 1967: We have chosen to fight a limited war in Vietnam in an attempt to prevent a larger war--a war almost certain to follow, I believe, if the Communists succeed in overrunning and taking over South Vietnam by aggression and by force. I believe, and I am supported by some authority, that if they are not checked now the world can expect to pay a greater price to check them later.

GWB, Jan. 10, 2007: The challenge playing out across the broader Middle East is more than a military conflict. It is the decisive ideological struggle of our time…In the long run, the most realistic way to protect the American people is to provide a hopeful alternative to the hateful ideology of the enemy – by advancing liberty across a troubled region.

There are many more comparisons via the link above. People this is getting crazier by the day. I watched that 'speech' last night with sadness and rage combined into one. Sadness for our country and our troops that take the brunt of Bush's actions, rage for Bush's unconscienable acts as Commander-in-Chief of our armed forces and as President. This insanity must stop, we need to take action against him. The only option is to impeach him, the sooner the better for all of our sakes.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

San Francisco's CBS affiliate and the Chronicle have seen the 'blogswarm' over Spocko's fight against the hate-filled bigots on right-wing radio station KSFO. The coverage has been mostly fair to favorable of Spocko's quest to stop the endless stream of hate and bigotry that spews from the mouths of their 'personalities' such as Melanie Morgan.

CBS 5 did a wonderful story on Tuesday, here's their print story and the YouTube:

The SF Chronicle article states mainly the facts, though there is something interesting towards the bottom. Apparently the pressure is being felt by KSFO, so much so that they will interrupt their regularly scheduled programming tomorrow at 3pm EST to hold a 'town hall' to discuss what's going on. It might be to complain about losing advertisers or be more substantive. Based on what is emitted at the station in the past, I remain skeptical to how this will all play out. You can fire certain people but if the message of hate stays the same it won't make a difference.

KSFO's Program Director Ken Berry had this to say in the Chronicle:

In a statement Wednesday, KSFO program director Ken Berry said, "Many of the remarks attributed to KSFO on the Internet are old, lacking context and, in some cases, outright lies. When our hosts have stepped over the line, they have apologized and have been reprimanded."

Berry declined to specify Wednesday which remarks were old or lies or who was reprimanded. Instead, at noon Friday, KSFO will pre-empt regular programming to allow four KSFO personalities cited in Spocko's e-mails to answer questions on-air about the controversy from the public, bloggers and media. "I don't tell people what to say, but I do think there will be some mea culpas there," Berry said.

So you know, this will probably just be a half-ass PR event to quell anything in the community that may take them down.

Most of you know Bush gave a big, weighty (think: marshmellow) speech tonight on how he is going to fix the mistakes that he 'owned' up to. Of course it is a bunch of bullshit. There is really no reason to talk about what he said, we have all heard it before. Blah, blah, blah, more troops to secure victory, blah, blah, blah. The only thing that is going to change is that there are more troops to be caught in the crossfire of a darkening civil war.

Dick Durbin gave the Democratic response moments later. It was dignified, well spoken and in opposition to the President. Personally I like Keith Olbermann's take on the situation tonight. He laid out the President's lack of credibility with bullet points for all to understand.

Another excellent segment by my hero Keith. If anyone deserves a Presidential Medal of Freedom, it's him. Olbermann is actually speaking in defense of freedom and against Bush's litany of lies and authoritarian approach to the American public's overwhelming disapproval on how the war is being handled.

Another insult to the troops and Army Reserve Spc. Patrick Rogalin in particular came from the corporate world recently. Patrick went off to Iraq a year ago, putting $8,000 worth of his stuff into a locker outside St. Louis, Missouri. An automatic payment system was set up and off he went.

Patrick survived his tour unscathed, though all of his belongings had disappeared while he was gone. Apparently Public Storage had auctioned everything off!

Imagine going to war, serving your country, and a damn corporation screws you over because of circumstances out of your control. Where is the troop support here?

Rogalin said he put his belongings into a Public Storage unit near St. Louis before shipping out and set up automatic payments with the company. But while he was in Iraq, he said, someone accessed his checking account and wrote more than $900 in worthless checks, which caused his storage payments to bounce. After learning of the problem from his bank, Rogalin opened a different account. He resumed making payments to Public Storage.

“When I got back I called Public Storage to find out the status of my account and they told me the contents of my storage container had been auctioned off in June because the bill hadn’t been paid,” he said.

Rogalin said Public Storage never told him his account was in trouble, or that everything he owned — clothes, books, electronic gear, furniture, magazines and other property — was going to be sold.

You think that's bad? It gets worse. Even though the contract states that his stuff was insured for up to $5,000, all the company did was give him $2,000 and an apology. After not even bothering to let Rogalin know of what was going on with the situation they try and screw him over twice.

Rogalin didn't stand for this and protested to Public Storage. Did Public Storage realize the error of their ways? No of course not, they turned around and threatened him.

“I called them back and told them this isn’t anywhere near right,” Rogalin said. “They upped their offer to $2,500 and gave me seven days to accept it or get nothing."

He said he rejected the $2,500 but does not have enough money to fight the company in court. He said he’d like to get the $5,000 due him under the contract.

Usually the cliche reads 'Don't compare apples and oranges' but in 2007 apples and politics go together exceedingly well. The new iPhone from Apple, Inc. is all the rage. As long as you put yourself on the waiting list and willingly to part with about four to five hundred dollars, you can get one of these state of the art products. Combining the iPod, phone, browsing the internet with Safari and a 2.0 megapixel camera, it seems to have it all.

With all these goodies, political junkies (like me) and organizers alike are thrilled to see this hit the market. The possibilities are endless. One blogger named Tacky at DailyKos already spelled out the possibilities.

According to Tacky, he/she sees:

Lists are generated

volunteer wakes up, logs into their campaign account

volunteer is presented with a set of available lists to work and picks one

the list comes up with a satellite/map google maps hybrid and directions from their location

when in the precinct, volunteer touches the next house on their map. They get voter names, the form they're filling out and a custom script for that voter if there is one (think voter vault)

After visiting the home volunteer fills out form and hits submit

results are available instantly to hq

after precinct is walked, phone goes into predictive dialer mode if volunteer chooses to call and HQ desires it. Not homes or inacessables are called on speakerphone with voter information on display. Forms filled out just like walking.

when done, volunteer logs out of precinct. Unfinished contacts can be reassigned dynamically as other volunteers log in.

campaign ninja plans tomorrow right after dinner

Cutting volunteer and staffer hours are like stars dancing in campaign manager's eyes. If there was ever a necessary waste of time on a campaign it was data-entry. The die-hard volunteers always came through at 3am to finish the task, yet imagine that enthusiasm bubbling out when they knocked on the doors of potential voters.

Apples and politics, happily merged together to cut down on data-entry hours and make more time for other things. America Coming Together used handhelds in the last Presidential race on a limited basis, though the 2008 race should see much more of this. For Apple's sake they better have a quality product behind yesterday's demonstration, you never know what glitches might come out and sway people back to Blackberries and Treos.

Where are your GOP Senators at five in the morning? I don't know if Dubya was still snoozing at that time but Gordon Smith (R-OR) certainly wasn't. He went on CNN to tell the world, or the few that were up on this side of the globe, that he is opposed to Bush's troop escalation and will back Senator Kennedy's plan to vote on any troop increase. This vote will pin Bush and his remaining cronies into a corner to show that they are responsible for the mess in Iraq. The failure that is this war was caused by Bush and his followers alone.

Smith wants the Congress to have the tools of accountability, good for you Senator. Of course Smith has wavered in his statements in the past so we can only judge by his actions and not his cable news appearances. Maybe the Senator is conflicted, perhaps certain influences (i.e. Republican leaders) have made his positions flimsy, who knows. The thing is Senator, stay off the course and you may save your job in 2008, maybe. I know Oregon will certainly be watching.

Ollie is hardly one to tell the truth unless it slaps him pretty hard in the face. He managed to lie to Congress when it was his ass on the fire, but now that everyone is piling on Bush he decided to heap himself on too. The retired Colonel went on the O' Falafel Factor to express this view.

Note how Bill O prefaces North's commentary by saying 'Some Democrats say....' Typical O'Reilly bullshit. Despite North's checkered past he has been to Iraq eight times recently and has seen that troops on the ground want more Iraqi troops, not Americans. Also in the clip he notes how this escalation is eerily similar to LBJ's actions in the mid to late 60s in Vietnam.

O'Reilly tries to compare him to Nancy Pelosi and is shrugged off. Nancy wants to hold Bush accountable for his actions, therefore Bill is not a fan of her. G-dforbid the Congress fulfill its constitutional duties, right?

Finally Bill tries to get North to say that Democrats wants to lose in Iraq since we want to get the hell out of this quagmire that has killed thousands of our troops and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. Colonel North avoided the pointed question. Good for you, still not a fan of yours but I'll give credit where its due.

Obviously the situation keeps deteriorating over at the Mickey Mouse network. Evidence of right-wing bias could be seen last year from ABC/Disney's political director Mark Halperin leading up to the election.

Lately Spocko has been battling ABC/Disney's rightwing propraganda talk radio station KSFO. Now they have taken it a step beyond. Gutter mouth Glenn Beck has just been hired for political commentary on Good Morning America. The racist bigot will be appearing regularly in the mornings to give us a dose of wingnut spin. In case you didn't read my earlier post on him, check it out here.

Media Matters asked why on Earth would GMA allow him on their show last month. Well now we have our answer. They were obviously testing him for a contract and since he didn't pull a Michael Savage they gave it to him. According to the NY Post yesterday, Beck was given the job due to a spike in ratings after talking about Islamic extremism. You can always count on Glenn to play on people's fears. As a winger he is skilled at it.

More from the NY Post article:

"Glenn is a leading cultural commentator with a distinct voice," said Jim Murphy, senior executive producer of "Good Morning America." "At times, he is the perfect guest for many of the talk topics we cover on morning news programs."

CNN Headline News said Tuesday that Beck will make several single-topic specials this year, after a previous one - on Islamic extremism - set a ratings record for the network.

Beck will make specials on people who believe in the apocalypse, Islam in America and the "myths of global warming," the network said. The first will air in late February or early March.

I think I'm going to be sick. Please write to GMA and tell them how ridiculous this is.

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

The damning proof:From the Pittsburgh Tribune ReviewNo that picture is not from last spring, it was just taken in Oakland, PA outside of Pittsburgh. Looks like Melanie Morgan has found another liberal enemy to attack, those evil cherry trees are spreading the myth of our changing climate. The cherry trees are now on the lying liberal hitlist along with The Weather Channel and Al Gore and the rest of the reality-based community.

Early signs of spring 2007 sprouted in Western Pennsylvania before the first snow of the year -- brief flurries -- fell Monday.

"Some plants can be fooled by warm weather," said Steve Grund, a botanist with the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy. "Flowering is triggered in plants by one or the other, or a combination of, day length and temperature."

The average high temperature in Pittsburgh last week was nearly 54 degrees -- more typical of the last week of March than the first week of January, when high temperatures are usually in the mid-30s and tree branches are covered in snow, not buds.

Seriously when are all wingers going to get it through their thick heads that the shtick ain't gonna fly anymore?

Heaven knows there are too many advertisements in New York, especially if you have to go to Times Square. Even more was coming in a place once thought unlikely. The Port Authority signed a $3.2 million dollar deal last week with Geico to plaster that little green lizard gecko all over our beautiful bridge.

From the Gothamist

Thankfully there was a huge backlash from level-headed New Yorkers that brought the agency to its knees, ultimately cancelling the deal and leaving the bridge as it is. The New York Times has more.

Of course this does not solve the problem that the PA faces as costs are rising to maintain the bridges. The problem may even escalate as authorities debate selling the bridge to a private enterprise. It wouldn't be a first, since that toll-road in Indiana that was sold to foreign-owned Spanish-Australian consortium Cintra-Macquarie. What will happen to the Port Authority's problems, only time will tell.

I nearly fell off of my chair when I learned FoxNews gasbag Sean Hannity has tried to copy KO's Worst Person in the World by introducing his own worst person segment on his new show, titled "Enemy of the State."

His first target was Sean Penn, an actor and activist who is dedicated to everything that Sean Hannity hates. Ideals such as freedom, democracy, liberty, decency, human dignity and generally all things sympathetic to a just, civil society.

By Eric Kleefeld | bioGreat Moments In Fox News Dept. Forget Keith Olbermann's "Worst Person In The World" contest — it's now been completely upstaged by a new Sunday contest on Fox: Sean Hannity's "Enemy of the State" award. Last night, Hannity's new Sunday night program aired for the first time, and from here on he'll award his "Enemy of the State" prize — a term originating with ancient Roman dictators placing bounties on rivals — on whatever red-state abortionist, anti-war activist, or run-of-the-mill Democrat who has attracted Hannity's ire that week. Imagine Hannity in that famous Twilight Zone episode, as the ranting Chancellor putting to death the old librarian portrayed by Burgess Meredith, and you'll get the idea. So who won the first "Enemy of the State" prize last night? To watch the segment and find out, view our YouTube here.

Great job TPM on identifying this nonsense.

Hannity thinking he can save the world in his own deluded head

So why oh why would Hannity start with Sean Penn? Perhaps it's because Penn has called him a 'whore' in front of a televised audience? Perhaps its because he won a First Amendment Award last month?

Penn also recently wrote an open letter to pResident Bush, a clear offense to Hannity. God clearly told Bush to run for President and be our first dictator, these 300 million fools and the billions beyond our borders just don't understand.

Items in the open letter that might offend Hannity:

Take a close look at your most vehement media supporters. See the fear in their eyes as their loud voices of support ring out with that historically disastrous undercurrent of rage and panic masked as "straight tough talk." How far have we come from understanding what it is to kill one man, one woman, or one child, much less the "collateral damage" of many hundreds of thousands.

I wonder who he's talking about? Hmmmmm. Are ya afraid? Well you should be.

Or maybe he thinks he is part of the second coming?

It could just be Hannity trying to impress his master Rupert, being the good little wingnut that he is. Seeing how Keith Olbermann has been climbing the mountain that is cable news this is obviously a cheap knockoff.

The bronze goes to Sean Hannity of Fox News Channel, establishing a new weekly segment called Enemy of the State. He selected Sean Penn as the first recipient. OK, we’ll just skip the rip-off aspect of this, Sean. If you want everyone to think of my show and my book when you launch into this segment, be my guest. But to use that phrase, the one that Roman dictators used to apply before the Centurians would go and stab their enemies in the throat?

Oh gawd what an awful site that is. Personally he is one of my top candidates for 'enemy of the state.' He goes right along with Rush, Melanie Morgan, Michael Savage, Glenn Beck and all those that preach hate with such disdain for the freedoms of the constitution.

As yesterday's news initially focused on Greenwich village as the site of the awful smell that was rampant across the city, the jokes were flying about New Jersey. Before you say it, I know, most of Jersey doesn't smell that way and yada yada yada.

Well today the NY Daily News reported that the smell actually did come from New Jersey. Officials determined that the stench originated across the Hudson in Secaucus, NJ.

While the exact source and cause of the odor is still not clear, Charles Sturcken of the city Department of Environmental Protection said the agency was "pretty sure it came from New Jersey."

Specifically, the heavily industrialized Hudson County waterfront with its chemical plants and port terminals as well as the Secaucus area, Sturcken said. Seven people in the Garden State were briefly hospitalized as a result of exposure to the stench.

Monday, January 08, 2007

This weekend the New York Jets and Giants exited the playoffs after losing to the Patriots and Eagles respectively. Although technically they are New Jersey teams since they play in the Meadowlands across the Hudson, but that is besides the point. What I am interested in here is the wingnuts at Little Green Footballs obsession with CAIR (Counsel on Islamic-American Relations).

CAIR's mission is to promote understanding and peace between two different societies, so that a dialogue can be established that can help the world become a better place. Yeah its idealistic but we need ideals so that we can work within the parameters of the real world. If we don't try to make things better than what the hell are we doing here?

CAIR seeks to empower the American Muslim community and encourage their participation in political and social activism.

So LGF, whats up with all the hate? In my humble opinion it seems that the right fears anything different than their harden, narrow-minded views of their Judeo-Christian upbringing. To them, Muslims are different and therefore people to be feared and hated, to be put down at all costs. The recent uproar of Congressman Keith Ellison's swearing in has to really have them going nuts. Right-wingers can always be counted on to be crazy over something and they didn't fail us on this occasion.

Congratulations to Keith for standing up to them with grace and dignity while LGF and others like them continue to scream unabated. Using Thomas Jefferson's Quran was icing on the cake for those standing up for the constitution while further infuriating the right, since they know deep down inside that they are wrong. Goodluck in the 110th Congress, we all have high hopes for you!

Dear Melanie usually has quite a mouthful for her devoted wingnut followers. She constantly spews hate speech at anyone that does not think, act or look like her. Today it seems she has it out for the The Weather Channel of all places. Yes, the cable outlet and website apparently has fallen to the darkside of liberalism.

According to Melanie, TWC's recognition of climate change's devastating effects on the Earth is actually meant to scare people into thinking that what man and his industriousness actually has an effect on the planet that we all reside on.

Far-left political ideologies are being promulgated through ever-increasing mediums, and recently I noticed that a once-vaunted American television network, The Weather Channel, had succumbed to the cancerous spread of liberalism.

[..]The Weather Channel is now engaged in a con job on the American people, attempting to scare the public that their actions are destroying the planet by creating a global warming crisis. Read full article here (Warning: may be migraine-inducing)

Well, well, sounds like a whole lot of INsanity to me. Congrats to Spocko on his continuing battle fighting the freaks at KSFO that allow this craziness to air in the San Francisco area. This type of hate and delusion needs to be put to an end. I am all for debate on issues that affect our nation and world, but please, let it be centered in the realm of reality.

Everything smells the way it is supposed to over here in Kips Bay. Unfortunately the smell of gas has been reported all over from Midtown to Battery Park and over in Jersey City. Of course this may not be news in Jersey City (sorry couldn't resist) but some schools and offices have been evacuated mainly on the westside of the city.

The PATH train service has been cut between 33rd St and Journal Square, NJ while the WTC trains to NJ are still running. The Mayor is coming out now to speak on the incident. Bloomberg announced there is a small leak at Bleeker and 6th Ave, though it can't account for the widespread smell. The mercapton in the gas is added to natural gas to allow people to detect the usually odorless and tasteless substance.

The city's air sensors do not report elevated levels of natural gas throughout the city, nor is there a large drop in pressure in the gas lines as reported by ConEd. This all looks like an unpleasant Monday morning for those on the westside and hopefully it will pass shortly.

Sunday, January 07, 2007

I don't go to New Jersey very often, but my blog had to make a virtual visit for this story. Last Friday Jersey City made Keith Olbermann's Worst Person in the World. Even worse than O'Reilly being his usual self and Michelle Malkin's role in the arrest of an Iraqi police officer, JC's Deputy Mayor Ador Equipado took top honors. What was his offense you ask?

I would sum up this as being a grade-A scumbag. Before performing a civil marriage ceremony, Equipado gave the bride and her mother applications for his privately owned phone service. After the couple waved off his sales attempts Donnell Morrison and the groom became man and wife. Unfortunately the Deputy Mayor continued his harassment.

Even though the couple paid the marriage fee of $28 beforehand Equipado wanted an additional $50. When the mother of the bride questioned him about it, he said, "Consider it a donation to me." Thankfully the groom was persuaded by his new mother-in-law not to give Equipado any more money.

Since this did happen in Jersey City, the story doesn't end there. City officials dragged their heels when the couple demanded justice. Finally the couple took their case to the Jersey Journal, which ultimately resulted in the Deputy Mayor's resignation. Oh and in case you are wondering, he is a Republican...surprise....surprise.

I returned from a warm Washington, D.C. Saturday afternoon to find an equally warm Manhattan. Wearing a t-shirt on the 6th day of the new year was quite a shock to say the least. Of course it really isn't that surprising is it? Climate change is increasingly screwing with the weather. Whether it produces abnormal snowfall in Colorado or record-breaking warmth here in the city, trouble is coming quick over the horizon.

So on that note, I present fellow Manhattanite Jill Sobule's song titled 'Manhattan in January'. A great spoof on the changing climate that mocks the 'benefits' of our warm weather. Found this on the Huffington Post, so here is the link for it.

The Village Voice is going through some massive cutbacks and the new owners have Tom Tomorrow on their hit list. His cartoons are some of the funniest in the nation. It is a travesty to trample on such talent. A larger version of the cartoon below can be found here.

In case you haven't seen any of his works, there are plenty to see here at his blog. If you like what you see please sign this petition and have your voice heard. If there are enough signatures we can hopefully get Tom reinstated. Go to it!

After scanning a list of local NYC blogs, I found one that is listed near my own subway stop with some great photos from around the city. Goeres has a whole host of photos, here are a few of my favorites: